After the Gate
by Emilia Widmore
Summary: Al and Ed are not in Amestris anymore. With no way of getting back, the two of them try to make the best of their situation and make friends with ghosts of their past. Please R&R! 3


The two brothers mercifully destroyed the gate without alchemy, the ultimate power of their world. Edward, the eldest of the two, sighed as he wished his brother would've stayed back, with Winry and Aunt Pinaco. He wished he could have stayed as well. He missed Winry, he missed her so much. After the gate was destroyed, everyone in the giant testing room stared. Alphonse couldn't help but look at the person with the same face as him, dead and covered in a pool of his own blood. Horror filled his face. The two brothers looked at each other. They nodded in sync and walked away. As they left the building Edward looked at his younger brother.

"You know you need new attire in this world doesn't give good messages to strangers. I learned that the hard way." Ed said with a laugh in his voice. Alphonse looked around at the people looking at him oddly with his bright red coat.

"Heh, you're right brother." Alphonse said while smiling brightly and putting his hand behind his head, like he was embarrassed. Ed smiled sweetly and remembered how he would always do that while he was trapped in his armor. "Brother?" Alphonse asked after walking a short distance.

"Yeah, Al?" Edward responded with another question.

"Where are we going to stay? We can't exactly stay on the street here." Al was worried.

"Don't worry, Alphonse. The guy I was staying with, also Alphonse, his place his right up here. I'm sure he won't need it anymore..." Edward trailed off with despair and mourning.

"Brother, is that the man who was covered in blood, with my face?" Al asked, breathing quite heavily as the brothers stopped on the corner of a street.

"Yea, it was," Ed remember his dear friend, Alphonse Heidrich. They had only known each other for a short time but Edward grew to really like him, for he resembled his younger brother so much. He even tried to help Ed get home, to his real home. Not this street corner apartment building.

Edward opened the door and held a hand out gesturing Al to walk in. The younger one hesitantly walked into the foreign building looking at the ornate walls and doors. Edward opened a neat door and showed the three bedroom apartment off to Al.

"Where can I sleep, brother?" Alphonse asked while looking in cupboards for something to snack on.

"You can have the other Al's room. It's just too the left down there." Ed gestured down the hall. He ventured off into his own room and threw some clothes at Al. "Here, I don't care what you sleep in, just wear these tomorrow, Kay?" Ed smiled as Al caught the flying clothes.

"Thanks, brother." Just then, Alphonse let tears escape his eyes. "Brother... Do you think Winry misses us already? How do you think central is? Do you think that Colonel Mustang closed the gate all right?" He cried, dripping cold tears onto the floor.

"Hey, Al. It'll all be okay, I promise," he said as he walked over to Al and put a hand on his shoulder. Al hugged his brother tightly, dropping the folded clothes that were just handed to him. "And Winry does miss us, if she could she'd probably hit us with a wrench." Ed laughed. "Also, if we could close the gate without alchemy, I'm sure Mustang did it just fine. And with alchemy over there, Central is probably fixed by now." Alphonse had stopped crying and wiped his face off. His blood shot eyes were now heavy and he realized he needed sleep.

"Good night, Brother. I'm glad to be with you again."

"You to, 'Night Al, I'll show you around tomorrow morning and help you adjust. It's really weird how there's lots of familiar faces. I have yet to see someone who looks like Winry though, if I can find that girl, I think I'll be way happier." Edward looked up out the window and smiled.

The brothers separated into different rooms and fell asleep. Well, Edward slept quickly. Alphonse lay awake staring at the ceiling. Occasionally he glances over at his clothes and red jacket hanging on the chair. He sighed thinking about how much he loved everyone back home, in Risembool. He was glad to have his Brother, though. Without him he thought he might die. He wondered how Ed survived without any of his loved ones here. Some more tears escaped his eyes as Al rolled to his side and embraced his pillow and cried himself to sleep. Alphonse woke up, not remembering where he was when he heard knocking from a distance. He slid his bottoms on and walked to where the noise was. The knocking was getting anxious and he opened the door to a young girl with curly blonde hair.

"Alphonse!" She screamed as she jumped on him, hugging him with tears running down her face. "I thought you were dead!" Al didn't get a good look at her face, but he had no idea who she was. He abruptly enjoyed the hug from the mysterious girl who smelled nice and was warm, then pushed her away and sternly said.

"You have the wrong person." He looked at her face and his eyes widened. _Winry?_ It looked like her, the face was exactly the same. The only thing different was the hair. It was short, no bangs, and very curly. Still golden.

"Oh," the girl said, tears streaming down her face as they dripped onto the floor, much like Al's from last night. "So he really is dead." She fell to her knees and weeped.

"Hey, Al? What's all the racket?" Ed asked sleepily, as he walked out wiping his eyes off. He looked at the girl sobbing on the ground. "Who is this?" he asked, suddenly awake.

"I don't know brother! She mistook me for the other Alphonse and when I said I wasn't him, she started crying." The youngest one tried helplessly to explain the situation.

"I am so sorry to disturb you." The beautiful girl stood up and ran away covering her eyes with her now wet hands.

"Hey, wait! Who are you?" Ed asked desperately, running out of the door. After realizing he was only wearing pants went back inside. Al went into the bathroom and took out his pony tail. His hair was so long. Looking at everyone else, their hair was all short. His hair was past his mid back and nearing his butt. He quickly grabbed a pair of scissors, held his hair together and chopped it off. He wasn't sure why he had done it. He wasn't sure what he should do with this big mass of golden hair a foot long. He just threw it in the closest thing he thought was the trash can. Alphonse decided to go for a walk in Edward's clothes. He hoped to run into that girl who looked like Winry. So he could remember bits of his home and not feel so depressed.


End file.
